


The Broken Necklace

by Sinelaborenihil



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: BDSM, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Hurt/Comfort, Porn With Plot, Porn with Feelings, Praise Kink, Rimming, Shameless Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-11
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:28:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26821399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sinelaborenihil/pseuds/Sinelaborenihil
Summary: Things go wrong in the Emprise du Lion and Zuri Trevelyan has to make a hard choice.
Relationships: The Iron Bull/Female Trevelyan (Dragon Age)
Kudos: 32





	The Broken Necklace

**Author's Note:**

> I love DAI, but I feel like things go really easily for the Inquisitor. I wanted things to get a little dicey.
> 
> Just a heads up, the second half of this is basically just porn with some BDSM elements, so if that's not your thing it'd probably be best to stop reading once they arrive at Skyhold :). Otherwise, I hope you enjoy!

“Shit!” The Iron Bull growled as they stood back to back in the narrow corridor of ice and stone. They had been working their way down into the Sarnia Quarry where the Red Templar Lieutenant were mining deep in the Emprise du Lion when things had suddenly gone tits up. It was always the simple things. One of Zuri’s spells had bounced off of a Red Templar shield and into an icy overhang, bringing the whole thing down. Zuri had thrown up a barrier, which had taken the brunt of it, but when the chunks had stopped raining down they saw to their horror that Cassandra was lying prone, a massive dent in her helm. Blood trickled out from under it and further down the passage, they could hear the enemy approaching.  


“Get her back to camp!” Zuri snarled, throwing up a wall of ice between them and their pursuers. “I’ll bring up the rear.”  


Bull hesitated for a fraction of a second, knowing what the Seeker would say. She’d demand they get Zuri to safety.  


“She’ll die without help,” Zuri said firmly. “Don’t argue with me. You know what they will do to her if we leave her.”  


Bull forced himself to swallow and nod. Gently he picked up Cassandra, giving Varric a grateful nod as the dwarf picked up the dawnstone axe that Zuri had made for him. Then, he began to run up the passage, focusing on nothing but keeping his breathing and stride smooth. Behind him he heard the sound of Zuri’s spells and Varric’s heavy footsteps, and then the sunset hit his face and they were up on relatively even ground.  


The relief was short-lived, however, as from the northeast he heard the sound of approaching Red Templars.  


“Shit!” Zuri said, panting and glancing down the passage where more enemies were rapidly gaining. She turned and looked at him and Bull felt his heart drop.  


“No,” he said immediately.  


“I’m faster alone,” she said firmly. “Get to Suledin. I’ll cover your trail and meet you there.”  


“Zuri-”  


“That’s an order, Bull,” Zuri said, her amber eyes flashing. “Get Cassandra to help and I’ll see you soon.”  


A lifetime of obeying orders was the only thing that set Bull’s feet in motion, and after a last desperate look at the woman he loved, he began to sprint towards the Keep. He felt the rush of frozen air and knew that behind him Zuri was calling down a blizzard to obscure their tracks. “Fuck!” Varric panted next to him.  


Bull nodded grimly but doggedly kept on, straining for the sounds of combat behind him. But his footsteps, and the wind, and their ragged breathing drowned anything out. Soon, the grim bulk of Suledin loomed in the distance, and Bull forced himself to put on a final burst of speed, lurching up the last few steps. Cole was waiting at the entrance, his pale eyes worried beneath his hat. Next to him stood Solas, frowning.  


“Seeker?”  


“In...In…” Cassandra muttered, then trailed off with a groan.  


“Come,” Solas said, leading them inside to where the Inquisition Healers had set up. Gently, his exhausted muscles protesting, Bull lay Cassandra down on a cot. Solas held his hand over the Seeker’s helm, and as Bull watched, the dent lifted.  


“It is safe to remove it,” Solas said. “The Healers may begin their work.” He turned to Bull and Varric, who had accepted a skin of water from a passing healer. “Where is the Inquisitor?” Solas asked quietly.  


Bull jerked his head towards the hallway and the three of them stepped into a dusty, unused room that had clearly been a sitting room at some point, where he filled Solas in on what had happened. 

The elf’s eyes had grown wide by the time he’d finished explaining. “This is grave news indeed,” Solas said softly.  


“Running, ragged, Red returning...the wolves howl as the moon rises. Rushing, racing, rivulets of red-”  


“Enough, Kid,” Varric said, halting the torrent of words from Cole as the young man materialized next to them.  


“I’m going back out to find Zuri,” Bull said, tamping down the images that Cole’s words brought screaming into his mind.  


“The gates have been closed,” Solas said. “As soon as the sun set.”  


Bull glanced up wildly, realizing as he caught sight of one of the slitted windows that the elf was right. How long had it taken them to get back? “I’ll open them,” he growled, snatching the waterskin from Varric and finishing it with one gulp.  


“You don’t know which way she went, Tiny,” Varric said gently. “We have to-”  


“We don’t have to do anything,” he snarled down at the dwarf, who, to his credit, met his glare without flinching. “I am not leaving Zuri out there with wolves and Red Templars and demons and-”  


“Varric is right, Iron Bull,” Solas said with infuriating calm.  


“I don’t care if he’s right!” Bull said and heard exactly how hysterical he sounded. “I can’t leave her out there, Solas. I just...can’t.”  


“And yet you must,” Solas replied firmly, but not unkindly. “She knows the way here. She is strong. She will return.”  


Bull stared at him for a moment, then shouldered past. “Fuck that,” he said. Behind him he heard Varric curse and the sound of Solas sighing. He reached for the doorhandle and felt an icy gust of wind pass him. When he looked down the handle was frozen solid.  


“Damn it, Solas!”  


The elf stood with his hand outstretched, an implacable look on his face. “Think, my friend!” he said. “If you go out there, you have no way of tracking her in the darkness. You will only put yourself at risk and cost the Inquisition resources that we could spend looking for her when it is safe to do so!”  


Bull forced himself to pause and take a deep breath, hating that he knew that Solas was right. “Fine,” he spat. “Let me out, Solas.”  


“You will not-”  


“I won’t do anything to hurt our chances of finding my girl at first light,” he managed to grate out. “That’s all I can promise. Now open the fucking door.”  


There was a surge of warmth and when Bull looked down, the ice was gone and the door was dripping with water. He jerked it open and stalked out of the room, almost knocking Dorian down in his haste. He didn’t slow down to apologize, instead making his way up to the battlements. If he couldn’t go out and find Zuri, he could damn well keep watch for her.  


It was there Dorian found him later, anxiously scanning the horizon by the light of the half moon.  


Wordlessly the magister held up a clay mug that steamed and smelled of mulling spices. At first Bull shook his head and Dorian sighed.  


“Punishing yourself by freezing your massive hindquarters off will not bring Zuri back any faster,” Dorian said, still holding up the mug.  


Bull growled and accepted his mug, taking a sip of the spiced wine and letting it burn its way down as Dorian blew delicately on his own mug.  


“What happened?” Dorian asked after a few moments of quiet.  


“Templar,” Bull said. “Reflected one of Zuri’s spells back, brought an ice sheet down on the Seeker.”  


“And Zuri ordered you to get Cassandra to safety,” Dorian said.  


Bull nodded, feeling his throat tighten. “I shouldn’t have left her,” he said.  


“I cannot help but think that it is a call you would have made, had it been one of your men wounded,” Dorian said and Bull clenched his eye shut, trying to keep his composure.  


“This isn’t about me,” he said after a long moment. “This is about Zuri, out there alone where-”  


“Do not think for one moment that I am not painfully aware of the things that could happen to her out there,” Dorian cut him off with unusual sharpness. “Zuri is-” his adam’s apple bobbed and he looked down into his mug. “She is my dearest friend,” Dorian finished softly. He straightened and by the light of the moon Bull thought he saw tears standing in the magister’s eyes. “I will be joining you at first light,” he said crisply. “You should get some rest. You’re not good to her exhausted.”  


Bull nodded and turned his eyes back to the horizon as Dorian walked away. _I’m coming, Zuri,_ he thought, willing his words to find her. 

####

 _I’m going to die out here,_ Zuri thought as she backpedaled away from where the two groups of Red Templars had converged and begun to fan out, searching for her and her companions. She was pretty sure that she’d managed to obscure Bull’s trail enough that they would come looking for her, rather than the encumbered qunari.  


Of course, that meant that they would come looking for her.  


And from the sound of it, they had found her trail.  


As had, from the sound of the howling, the local wolves.  


She didn’t dare use more magic. She was down to her last two lyrium potions and she wanted to conserve them for an emergency.  


“This way!” she heard a man’s voice shout and she swore softly to herself. They were closer. Much, much too close.  


Abandoning obscuring her trail in any way, Zuri took off at a sprint, launching herself through the snow as fast as she could. She darted around a tree and skidded to a stop, her heart leaping to her throat. Several lightly armored men stood between her and the path she’d been hoping to take. They were mostly foot soldiers, not templars, but there were at least seven of them and one of her, and already they were beginning to spread out to circle her.  


“An Inquisition mage,” said the one templar. The sun was rapidly setting and the man’s eyes shone in the darkness, glowing the eerie red that told her he’d already begun to succumb to Red Lyrium’s influence. “Take her alive. I’m sure she can tell us something interesting.”  


“I’ll die first,” she spat back, her eyes darting left and right as she felt the telltale sensation of the templars powers closing down over her like someone putting a glass over a spider.  


The templar, who appeared to be in charge, chuckled, the sound oddly hollow. “You’ll die _later_ ,” he corrected. “Once we have ripped every scrap of information from your mind and every last scream from your throat.”  


Zuri shuddered and took a few steps backwards. Motion in her peripherals was all the warning she had before a leg swept out, knocking her feet from under her. She rolled in a panic, thrashing at the hands that reached for her throat as weight descended on top of her. The hands batted her away like she was nothing, and she felt a pair of heavy gauntlets close around her throat. She struggled, hearing the crunching of snow as the other men drew closer.  


“You hear that, sweet?” the man on top of her growled down into her ear, his foul breath raising her bile in her throat. “We’re going to make you scream.”  


One of his hands left her throat and came back down to strike her across the face. His weight was crushing her and Zuri felt the edges of her vision growing dark as she continued to struggle.  


She just needed to hold on for a little bit longer-just a little bit and then-  


_There._  


Suddenly the air around them was filled with snarling and the musky scent of wild creatures. The man on top of her was knocked away and Zuri gagged as his blood sprayed on her face. His hand clutched at her reflexively and Zuri felt her necklace snap and give way.  


Shit! The Token of the Packmaster, the thing that was giving her nominal control over the wolves.  


Trusting the lay of the land she had gotten earlier, Zuri rolled away from the conflict and staggered to her feet. Bodies surged around her, human and non human, and eyes, too many eyes glinted at her from the shadows.  


Knowing she was out of options, Zuri did the only thing she could think of to buy some time. She reached within herself, into the well of power that perpetually surged and bubbled in the anchor, and called down the Mark of the Rift. Around her, men and beasts crashed to the ground with screams and growls of pain and rage.  


“It’s the fucking Inquisitor!” the templar roared and Zuri’s heart sank. In her panic, she had outed herself and given them all the more reason to catch her.  


Trusting the glimpse of the area she’d gotten before the darkness had shrouded it all in shadow, Zuri forced her exhausted body to roll to the side. She felt herself picking up speed as she went down an embankment and then she was flying through the air, only to land what felt like an eternity later in a clatter of armor. The air was knocked brutally from her lungs, and an awful ache in her chest told her that she’d broken at least one rib on the way down. Whimpering, Zuri dragged herself backwards in the dark until she hit something solid. She reached down for her potions, desperate for a potion of regeneration, but found that somewhere in her fall the satchel had fallen off. She had nothing. And when she tried to pull her magic from within her, it stubbornly refused to obey her call. Wrapping her arms around herself as tight as her broken bones would allow, Zuri tried to force back the panicky sobs that would surely give away her position and rob her of the last of her energy. In the distance she heard the sound of wolves howling, and as chilling as the sound was, she was just too tired to care.  


_At least the wolves will be kinder than the Red Templars,_ was her last thought before darkness claimed her.

####

The sun had scarcely peeked over the horizon when Bull stumped into the guardhouse with Dorian, Varric, and Solas in tow, chivvying the guards to open the gates. They had left a sleeping Cassandra behind with the healers and Cole, who were certain she would make a full recovery. Blackwall, Sera, and Vivienne were close behind them, planning to go in the other direction. The young corporal in charge gave the signal and the internal gate mechanism began to turn, propelled by a turnstile within the walls. The great gate trundled across the ground agonizingly slowly, receding into the wall as it did and revealing the portcullis. The corporal held up a hand and just as Bull was about to ask what was wrong, the wind blew the trees and let a shaft of sunlight through. Hanging from the gate was a potion belt with a familiar necklace dangling from the buckle.  


Before anyone could stop him, Bull darted forward and jerked it through the gate. The necklace chain was broken, and as he pulled it through his fingers it left a bloody trail across his gray skin.  


“Zuri-” he croaked before words failed him.  


“There’s a note,” Varric said hoarsely.  


Dorian snatched it from the dwarf with a hand that shook. “We have the Inquisitor,” he read. “Remove your forces from Sarnia immediately and the Elder One promises a swift death.” He looked up, his gray eyes as cold as two pieces of flint. “Well,” he said briskly. “This proves nothing. I say we go out and find someone to hit.” He swallowed hard.  


Varric took a shuddering breath and eased the potion belt from Iron Bull’s hands. Bull didn’t stop him, he scarcely heard them. He just stared down at the necklace. He had left her and now…  


He clenched his eye shut and brought the necklace to his lips, his stomach turning at the coppery scent that came with it.  


“The belt is broken,” Varric said. “Here, behind the clasp. It wasn’t unfastened.”  


Bull gritted his teeth, visions of the awful things that could have happened to Zuri vying for his attention. He knew the brutality that often lingered in the hearts of those who made a life of war. He had seen the atrocities inflicted on enemy captains and generals when they were taken alive. His Zuri was a warrior as surely as any member of the Berisaad. But she was also a mage. And a woman. All too vulnerable to the powers of Red Templars. All too vulnerable to-  


“Bull!” Varric said urgently. “I think Dorian’s right.”  


“And if they took her?” Bull whispered. He was jerked from his dark thoughts by a harsh slap across the face. He stumbled back a step and found himself glaring down at Dorian, whose eyes were equally filled with rage.  


“Don’t. You. _Dare_ give up on her!” Dorian hissed, grabbing Bull by the harness and jerking him so close that their noses almost touched. “Don’t you dare! Put that thing away, put on your big boy pants, and think! Or are you really as bestial and stupid as my countrymen would have me believe?”  


“The belt is broken,” Bull said mechanically. “So is the necklace. She didn’t take them off. They were...were...torn from her-” he trailed off as his gorge rose, the images swirling back into his mind. He had to force them back. Panic would get them nowhere. Panic wouldn’t bring Zuri home. He was the Iron Bull. He had to be strong. For her.  


“Don’t go there, Tiny,” Varric said gently and Bull forced himself to nod. “There are a lot of ways it could happen.”  


“But how did they know it was her?” Bull asked.  


“How many other women run around with half of a dragon tooth around their necks?” Dorian retorted. “It was an absolute scandal, her family being who they are. It’s only fortunate that we control the supply of dragon teeth or half of Orlais would be wearing the Necklace of the Kadan. It is an easy way to identify her.”  


Bull forced himself to take another deep breath.  


“Darlings, why are we hanging about?” Vivienne’s voice said, cutting through the chilly morning. “I thought you were going to leave at first light.”  


Bull glanced up to see Vivienne, Sera, and Blackwall trudging up to them, their expressions worried. Quickly he filled them in and explained Varric and Dorian’s theory. The more he spoke, the more his mind cleared. The panic was there, but he was able to lock it away.  


“Well that’s rubbish, innit?” Sera said loudly. “No way they got the inky. It’s all a bunch of piss!”  


Vivienne raised a patrician eyebrow. “Not how I would have put it,” she said. “But I agree. It is a ruse, meant to buy them time to actually locate the Inquisitor.”  


“Then we proceed as we planned,” Blackwall said.  


All in agreement, they motioned for the Corporal to open the gates. As the last iron spikes were clearing Bull’s horns, a voice rang out from the treeline. “It is no use, Inquisition. We have your Inquisitor. Vacate Sarnia now and the Elder One will be merciful. Continue to delay and not only will your deaths be the stuff of nightmares, but I promise you will inflict horrors you have never imagined upon the Inquisitor.” An ugly laugh echoed out from somewhere to the southwest of them.  


“Keep talking,” Sera said, her voice unusually serious and grim. “Get down when I say, Bull, yeah?”  


“Yeah,” Bull growled back.  


“My men have already gotten started,” the voice continued. “It didn’t take long for her to break and start screaming. She will never-”  


“Down,” Sera hissed and Bull dropped to one knee. The arrow shot off into the treeline and the man’s taunts ended with a gurgle. The young elf woman was off like a shot, sprinting ahead of them into the treeline with Blackwall close behind. The rest of them followed and caught up in time to see Sera jerk her arrow out of the mans eye with a grimace of disgust.  


“Tracks,” Blackwall said, jerking his chin to the south. And sure enough, though new snow had partially obscured them, there was a single set of tracks leading away.  


“Let’s go,” Bull said, tucking Zuri’s belt into his own and tenderly wrapping the Necklace of the Kadan in a handkerchief Varric handed him and stowing it away in a secure pouch. _We’re coming, Kadan._

####

She heard voices approaching. Men’s voices calling out, jeering. They were going to find her lying broken and break her further. They were going to-  


Snarling.  


Howls.  


Screams.  


Gleaming green eyes that chased away the red.  


Breath puffing in the darkness.  


Warmth.  


Darkness.

####

Everything hurt. From her head down to the tips of her toes and everything in between, Zuri’s entire body ached something terrible.  


Oddly enough, however, she wasn’t cold.  


She remembered being cold for a long time.  


It was uncomfortable at first, but then it had started to fade.  


Warmth had begun to seep in and it was then that Zuri knew that she was dead, or at least, dying. She’d been cautioned about this before coming to the Emprise. The strange lassitude that came from your body getting so cold it looped back around to thinking it was warm.  


Then, you died.  


_I’m sorry_ , Zuri thought, picturing the Inquisition left alone to fight Corypheus. She was under no delusions that she was some great general or anything, but she did have the anchor and surely saving the world would be easier with that than without it.  


_Fuck, Bull, I’m so sorry_ , she thought, her heart clenching at the thought of him getting the news that she was dead. She knew that they meant to each other. But they hadn’t said the words yet. Curse her stubbornness. Curse her fucking fear. The tears began to fall, so she was alive enough to cry, at least. Though weren’t weeping ghosts a thing?  


Something warm and wet drew across her face, taking with it her tears and leaving a musky smell. Coughing, Zuri blinked her eyes open and found herself staring into a wide, panting mouth lined with extremely sharp teeth.  


The black wolf yawned and gave Zuri another lazy lick before laying back down and resting its head on its massive paws. Moving slowly, her heart beginning to thud, Zuri sat up as much as she dared and looked around. She was flanked by two wolves, one lay across her lap, and judging from the heavy breathing, another one had nudged its way between her and the icy overhang. Her hand shaking, 

Zuri reached down and brushed her fingers over her collarbone. Her battered body protested, but her fingertips encountered the familiar outline of the Token of the Packmaster. It hadn’t broken! 

Then what had?  


Her brain felt fuzzy.  


“I need to go home,” she said out loud in the even voice she used to calm restive horses. “Can you let me up?”  


The big wolf across her legs cocked its head and weakly Zuri made a shooing motion. With a sigh that was almost human, the wolf shifted itself, shaking out its fur as it rose and sprinkling Zuri with snow. She took a deep breath and tried to rise, only to fall back with a cry of pain. It was louder than she intended and she cursed herself as she tried to catch her breath and take stock. Broken collarbone certainly. Broken leg. Cracked ribs if she was lucky?  


“Fuck,” Zuri whispered. “Shit, shit, shit, fu-”  


The wolf in front of her head snapped its head up, scanning the treeline somewhere to the north of her. It let out a rumbling growl and Zuri froze. The Templars were back. She can’t have landed far from where she fell or she would actually be dead. They had come down with the light to finish what they had started.  


Her hand shaking, Zuri reached for her boot, straining to reach the dagger that thankfully still poked out the top. She heard the panicky little sounds she was making, saw her breath coming out in short little bursts. It hurt. It hurt so badly to reach and reach but then cold and solid in her hands. Her trembling fingers drew it from its sheath and brought it to her chest, clutching it to her like a newborn.  


It would do her no good against the Templars.  


Except...if she was dead, well and truly dead, they could extract no secrets from her. As far as she and Solas could tell, the anchor needed someone, a person to, well, anchor to. Without her, it would be gone and Corypheus might not be stopped, but at least he wouldn’t be helped. Her hands shook as she unfastened the gauntlet over her left wrist. The familiar scar lay beneath it, from the last time she had thought to end it. How young she had been that day in the Circle tower.  


She gritted her teeth. There were no friends to save her today. Only enemies that would use her to destroy everyone and everything that she loved.  


The tears were coming fast now, but Zuri steeled herself, silently saying goodbye to her friends and the man she loved. The dagger was wickedly sharp, it would be reasonably quick. She rested its point against her wrist and heard herself scream out with pain as the wolf behind her suddenly lurched out from behind her back, sending her sprawling. Her bones grated, the agony piercing her as surely as the dagger would have, and for a moment Zuri thought she saw pity in the wolf’s luminous blue eyes before loped off towards the trees. The pain was dragging her under, a fierce undertow of agony and fear and the searing sense of failure. They would find her and use her and there was nothing at all she could do. Blindly she groped for the dagger, the sound of the wolf’s howl following her down into darkness.

####

“What was that?” Sera asked, suddenly stopping in her tracks and almost causing Dorian to crash into her.  


“Varric muttering,” Dorian said. “Something about the ass end of nowhere.”  


Sera shook her head. “No! It sounded like a person.”  


“I heard it as well,” Vivienne said. “To the south. It sounded like a cry of pain.”  


“Shit,” Blackwall said, holding up a hand.  


They froze, anxiously watching the experienced Warden.  


“Something’s out there,” Blackwall said. “Something big.”  


Solas appeared at Bull’s side, cocking his head. “Wolves,” he said after a moment. “They have found something.”  


As though in response to his words, the howls suddenly rang out to the south, filling the air with their mournful song.  


The hair on Bull’s arms stood straight up and then, as quickly as the howls began, they subsided.  


“There,” Solas said, pointing to the right.  


Bull squinted and for a moment saw nothing. Then, a shape detached itself from the shadows of a fallen tree and a wolf the size of a pony showed itself. It stood confidently, its tail slowly waving back and forth.  


“Fucking shit!” Sera said and Bull heard the sound of an arrow being drawn.  


“No!” Solas hissed, the end of his staff swatting the bow to the side and sending the arrow off to thump harmlessly into a tree.  


“Pisshead!” Sera exclaimed, reaching for another arrow.  


“Look at her,” Solas said. “Any normal wolf would have run. She is trying to get our attention.”  


“I’m not sure how I feel about that, Chuckles,” Varric said, sounding nervous.  


“I'm sure,” Sera said. “It's bollocks! Fucking demon wolves demon-”  


“It has been some time since I practiced Creation magic,” Vivienne said, sounding for the world like she’d just found a particularly interesting tome in a library. “But if I recall correctly, there are certain disciplines that would allow a mage to possess a creature such as this.”  


“The Avaar do it with no possession at all,” Dorian said, rubbing his hands together and blowing. “Either way, the beast does not appear to be attacking.”  


“We are out here to find Zuri,” Bull said, scanning around them for signs of the rest of the pack. Images had begun to flood into his mind again. He had seen animal attacks in Seheron. If the wolf was acting oddly because it and its pack were maneaters, well, they would be lucky to find any of Zuri, let alone escape with their own lives.  


“What’s our play, Solas?” he hissed to the elf. “We need to keep searching and the trail leads this way.”  


“Straight into her territory,” Solas said.  


“He’s right,” Blackwall confirmed.  


Bull glanced at the wolf, whose tongue now lolled from its mouth, looking for the world like it was laughing at them. Then, it turned and took a few steps to the south before glancing back.  


“Well, that seems clear enough,” Solas said in a businesslike voice. “Let us follow her.”  


“Follow the demon wolf?” Sera sputtered.  


In the distance, the pack once more set up a howl. When it faded, the sounds of the forest faded with it. In the suddenly echoing silence, Bull heard a single human scream.  


“ZURI!” he bellowed, lurching off in the direction of the sound. He knew that it was her. Solas was at his side in a second and together they darted through the woods, following the retreating form of the wolf. They skidded out of the treeline and Bull cursed as the sunlight all but blinded him. Only Solas swinging his staff out across Bull’s chest alerted him to the danger and he skidded to a stop with a grunt as the polished wood struck him. He glanced down and saw a steep incline. At the bottom there had clearly been a battle. Bodies of Red Templars and one unfortunate wolf lay in snow that was mashed up and covered with flecks of blood and guts.  


“Sweet Maker,” Blackwall panted, arriving at their side.  


“There!” Dorian said and then the magister was sliding down the hill, angled towards where a group of wolves were huddled together, watching. “Back!” he said, the end of his staff beginning to glow.  


The wolves leapt to their feet, fanning out towards Dorian, their lips curling to reveal massive fangs.  


“Zuri!” Dorian called and Iron Bull finally saw the faintly purplish glint of the armor she had made herself in the undercroft when one of the wolves shifted.  


“ZURI!” Bull bellowed and then he was sliding down the hill behind Dorian, ready to rip a wolf’s head off with his bare hands if necessary.  


“Iron Bull, stop!” Solas called and then the elf was at his side, interposing his body between Bull and the closest wolf.  


“Solas-”  


“She’s unharmed!” Solas said. “She’s unharmed Bull. Look! They were protecting her!”  


“I think he’s right,” Dorian said uneasily, rising to his tiptoes to see above the milling wolves. “She looks hurt, but look up there.” He pointed with his staff and from the disturbances in the snow and the streaks of blood on the ice it was clear where Zuri had fallen. “I think the wounds are from falling.” The magister glanced over at Solas. “Didn’t she have that amulet from the Hinterlands?” he asked. “From when you freed those wolves from the demon?”  


“The Token of the Packmaster,” Solas breathed. “I think you must be right, Dorian. They are responding to the amulet’s magic.”  


“So...not demony wolves?” Sera said, eyeing the wolves with a little less trepidation.  


“It would appear not,” Vivienne said. “But that still does not answer the question of how we will get close to her.”  


“We have to hurry,” Dorian said. “She’s going to freeze out here.”  


“I’m going,” Bull said.  


“I shall come with you,” Solas said.  


The others spread out, doing their best to seem non-threatening as Bull began to walk forward. “Zuri?” he called softly.  


He thought he saw her move and began to walk faster, ignoring the increased growling from the wolves. All of their attention was focused on him - it didn’t seem like she was in any danger. Let them attack him. He didn’t care so long as he could reach her. He saw the two wolves closest to him hesitate and then their eyes suddenly flared bright blue.  


“She must have realized it was us and ordered them to stand down!” Solas said. “Quickly, Bull! Before it wears off!”  


He didn’t need Solas to tell him twice. He darted forward and dropped to his knees next to Zuri, his hands shaking as he looked down at her. She looked awful. Every inch of skin he could see was covered in bruises and her lips were blue and quivering.  


“Wrap her in this,” Dorian said, breathing heavily as he handed Bull his cloak. Quickly, Bull did as the magister said before lifting Zuri and holding her tightly against his chest. Out of his peripheral vision he saw the pale blue of a barrier and noticed that Solas’s eyes were closed and his staff stretched towards them. He felt a rush of gratitude, knowing that Solas’s barriers were rivaled only by Zuri’s. 

The wolves remained still as they passed through them, and as they went past the last two their eyes flickered back to their usual luminous green.  


The big female close to them gave a little sneeze and then the pack loped away without a second glance.  


Solas let out a long breath and lowered his staff, opening his eyes. “I have never seen the amulet in action before,” he said with wonder. “I wonder if the Inquisitor would let me examine it.”  


“Later,” Bull growled. “For now, let’s get our Inquisitor home.”  


“Drinks on you lot!” Sera said, grinning.  


The relief in his heart was so great that Bull found himself giving her a tired smile back. Next to him, Dorian pulled out a potion of regeneration and gently tipped it between Zuri’s lips before tucking his cloak more tightly around her.  


“You hate the cold,” Bull said as they trudged up the hill.  


“Yes,” Dorian said, assiduously not looking at him. “But I would hate losing my best and possibly only friend to hypothermia even more.”  


“Not your only friend,” Bull said and caught the startled look that Dorian gave him. “Will you help me with her when we get back?” he asked. “She trusts you.”  


“I am no healer,” Dorian said. “But I will do all that I can.”  


Bull was about to respond when he saw the blue begin to fade from Zuri’s lips. Alarmed he stumbled and clutched her to himself. “Zuri!”  


“Oh do stop shouting,” Vivienne said, striding up to him and resting the back of her hand against Zuri’s forehead. “Ah, that’s much better.”  


“What did you do?” Bull asked.  


Vivienne sighed and raised an eyebrow at Dorian.  


“That’s brilliant!” Dorian said, looking down at where Zuri was visibly breathing more easily. “You are drawing the cold out of her slowly.”  


“So she doesn’t go into shock from being warmed too suddenly, my dear,” Vivienne said as though that was just a thing that he was supposed to know. “By the time we reach the keep, her body will be almost back to where it should be, temperature wise at least. If we were to do it any other way, the shock would stop her heart as surely as any dagger.”  


Bull shuddered and began to walk again, forcing the fact that the magic was working to save his Kadan to keep him from being creeped out by the fact that it was happening right there.  


The shadows were growing long again when the Keep came into sight, but the fleet-footed Sera had run ahead and warned the servants that they were coming. Zuri’s quarters were blazing with light and warmth when they ascended the last step and entered them, and Bull lowered her down onto her bed gently. He felt his bad knee trembling with exertion and gratefully accepted the stool that Dorian nudged in his direction without comment.  


The magister adjusted the foot warmer tucked between the sheets and reached into his belt, pulling out another potion of regeneration. Bull watched him tip it between Zuri’s full lips, noting that her color was already improving. He felt a sudden gentle flow of energy returning and realized with a start that Zuri must have adjusted their potions the last time they were at skyhold. It seemed that he was getting some measure of the potions effects just by virtue of being near her.  


“She does make a lovely brew,” Dorian said with a small smile. He wandered over by the fire and Bull heard the sound of wine being poured. The magister returned holding two glasses and handed one to Bull before snagging a chair for himself. He raised his glass towards Zuri. “To dear friends and their speedy recovery,” he said.  


“I’ll drink to that,” Bull said, throwing his wine back without tasting it.  


The two men lapsed into silence, each taking turns dabbing Zuri’s head with a washcloth as the night wore on. Somewhere around midnight there was a soft knock on the door.  


“It’s Cassandra,” the Seeker said from outside.  


“Come in, Seeker,” Bull said, tamping down the surge of resentment that he knew in his heart was unfair.  


Cassandra entered, shutting the door softly before limping over. “How is she?” she asked, looking down with worried eyes.  


“On the mend,” Dorian said with a glance towards Bull.  


“Iron Bull,” Cassandra said. “I-”  


“It’s all right, Seeker,” Bull said, his eyes not leaving the gentle rise and fall of Zuri’s chest. “I was following orders. It wasn’t your fault that ice gave.”  


“Still,” Cassandra said. “If I had been faster, our friend would not be in this state. If there is anything that I can do…”  


“Handle the paperwork for a few days,” Bull said. “Once she wakes up.” If she wakes up. The intrusive thought hit him like a blow and he reached for Zuri’s hand, forcing himself to be gentle as he took it in his own.  


“Consider it done,” Cassandra said. She left as quietly as she had come, and over the course of the night and the next day, each of their companions came by at least once to check on Zuri. Varric pulled a chair up next to Dorian and the two of them took turns dozing.  


Bull hadn’t thought that he’d fallen asleep, until he heard Cole’s quiet voice at his shoulder. “The wolf watches, waiting, worried, wondering when she will wake. The pack is silent, the den, empty.”  


“Easy, kid,” Varric grunted, shifting in his chair with a groan. “Why don’t you see if you can convince some of the kittens to come up here and keep Zuri company?”  


“They like to chase my shoes,” Cole said.  


“That’s because you never tie the laces,” Varric said with the feigned annoyance of a father repeating himself.  


Cole flashed him a brief smile. “How else will they know to follow?” he asked. And then he was gone.  


Solas came by with the healers to make sure that she was in fact mending, and as the late afternoon sun faded the next day he smiled tiredly at Bull.  


“I think she will wake soon,” he said. He rested his hand on Bull’s shoulder, his touch cool and sure. “I am glad of it.”  


“Solas,” Bull said, glancing back at the bald elf. “About the night she went missing-”  


“It is forgotten,” Solas said, inclining his head. “What you share is precious. I understand your grief. I am only glad that, in the end, it did not have to last.” With that he turned and left.  


“Always so cryptic,” Dorian said wryly.  


“It’s a wonder he doesn’t have more women sniffing around,” Varric added. “Broody elves are all the rage.”  


“I don’t know,” said a quiet, shaky voice. “I’ve always preferred smart-ass qunari to broody elves.”  


Zuri blurred in his vision as Bull gazed down at her and he heard her make a soft, sad sound before one of her shaking hands reached up to wipe the tears from his eye.  


“Kadan,” he whispered, catching her hand and giving it a tender kiss. It had regained its usual warmth and Bull felt his throat constrict.  


“Hello, darling,” Dorian said, providing a merciful distraction. “Can I get you anything? Another blanket? Tea? A wolf puppy since apparently you are now their queen?”  


Zuri chuckled, then winced, rubbing her chest with her free hand. “A drink that isn’t tea?” she asked.  


Varric grinned and patted her knee. “Mixing alcohol with pain-relieving herbs is such a terrible idea that I’m sure I’ve seen Hawke do it,” he said. He glanced between her and Bull and rose with a wince. “I’ll see what I can scare up.” His kind eyes grew serious. “I’m glad you’re all right, Zuri,” he said quietly.  


“Thanks for being here, Varric,” Zuri said, her lips quivering a little.  


The dwarf gave her a lopsided smile, shaking his head. “You’d think I’d have learned my lesson with women with more courage than sense,” he said with mock sternness. “Rest, Inquisitor. I’ll check on you in a bit.” He strode from the room whistling and Zuri chuckled looking after him.  


“Was he here the whole time?” she asked.  


“More or less,” Dorian said. “We weren’t inclined to leave you alone, you see. We were concerned that if we did, you’d bring the wolves back.”  


Zuri wrinkled her nose, tilting her chin down and sniffing her shirt. “I smell like wet dog. Were the wolves real, then?”  


Bull nodded. “Solas said it was the Token of the Packmaster,” he explained. “He wanted to look at it, I hope you don’t mind.”  


Zuri shook her head. “I don’t mind anything if I can have a bath,” she said.  


“You are in no condition to walk down to the bathing chambers,” Dorian said sternly.  


“But-”  


“Which is why I took the liberty of having a tub brought up here,” Dorian finished with a flourish. He gestured towards the fireplace and Zuri glanced over curiously before letting out a bark of laughter.  


“That is a trough,” she said, and her face had never looked more gorgeous to Bull than in that moment as she grinned at the magister. “From the stables.”  


“Well, it’s a very nice trough,” Dorian said archy. “And it’s been very thoroughly cleaned, I assure you. But most importantly, it is here and already full of water that I personally have heated just for you.” He smiled at her and there was such warmth and tenderness in it that Bull felt a surge of affection for the magister. “You aren’t ready to traipse about the Keep, my dear,” he said sternly. “But I knew that you would want to bathe.” He looked suddenly uncertain. “And I thought-”  


“It’s lovely, Dorian,” Zuri said, reaching out with her free hand. Dorian clasped her hand briefly and brought it to his lips.  


“I imagine the two of you would like some time alone,” Dorian said, his voice sounding thick. “Perhaps we shall catch up later?”  


Zuri nodded. “Dorian I-”  


The magister tsked. “I told you before, I abhor confessions, of any sort.” His lips curled into a smile beneath his uncharacteristically unkempt mustache.  


“Too bad,” Zuri said, tugging on his hand.  


Dorian complied with a grumble and the two embraced gently.  


“Love you,” Zuri said with a little sniffle.  


“Kaffas,” Dorian said, and Bull saw the tears tracking down his face. “Festis bei umo canavarum,” Dorian said, brushing his lips over her forehead. “I love you too, Zuri. Now if you don’t mind, I am going to go bathe not in a trough, then drink enough to forget that I have been so mawkish in front of a Maker-Cursed Qunari, of all things.”  


Bull chuckled. Things between him and Dorian had...shifted during Zuri’s convalescence. They had achieved grudging respect before, but Bull could hardly but think of Dorian as a friend after the last thirty-six hours or so. The magister’s love of the woman Bull loved had bridged the gap between them.  


“You’re going soft, ‘vint,” he teased, giving Dorian a slap on the shoulder that made the other man stumble.  


Dorian straightened his shoulders and gave Bull his most haughty look before flashing a devastating grin at him and Zuri and bowing. He swept from the room and when the door closed, Bull rose and locked it.  


To his alarm, when he turned around Zuri was sitting up and beginning to scoot off the bed.  


“Kadan!”  


She winced as her feet touched the floor and Bull was at her side in an instant, wrapping an arm around her waist. He helped her to the tub and tenderly helped her undress, before sweeping her off her feet. She giggled in his arms and kissed him as he lowered her into the steaming water.  


She hissed as the water closed over her, her eyes rolling back in her head as the smell of juniper and clary sage enveloped them both.  


Bull tried not to wince as he stared at the yellowing bruises on her body, evidence of all she had suffered. The cuts and abrasions had already healed, but the bruises remained, evidence of the series of broken bones that Solas and the healers had tended.  


“Well?” Zuri said lazily, cracking one eye open. “Aren’t you going to join me?”  


Bull blinked down at her. “Zuri-”  


“It’s a very nice trough,” she said. “Very roomy.” She pulled a face. “I know you haven’t left my side since we got back,” she said, her tone gently teasing. “Don’t you want to get clean?”  


“No,” Bull teased back, feeling some of the tension leave his shoulders as he looked down at her. It felt good to joke with her. He leaned down and kissed her, mindful to be gentle. He caught her lower lip in his teeth, then looked into her eyes. “Clean is roughly the opposite of what I want to get right now, Kadan,” he rumbled.  


She looked up at him wide-eyed. “What are you waiting for?” she asked a little breathlessly.  


He reached down and cupped her cheek. “Tell you what, Kadan,” he said. “I’ll get in, but we aren’t going to get anything other than squeaky clean for right now.” He stroked his thumb over her cheekbone. “I need to be certain that you are all right,” he said. “Let me take care of you.”  


“Isn’t that what you’ve been doing?” she asked and he heard the little catch in her voice that told him she was close to tears.  


“I’m not done yet,” Bull said firmly. He unwound the shawl Krem had knitted for him from his shoulders and draped over a chair before shucking his trousers and knee brace. He winced at how swollen his knee was and hoped that Zuri didn’t notice. He eased her forward in their makeshift tub and slid in behind her, grunting at the heat of the water. He pulled his lover back against him, wrapping his arms around her and nuzzling into her neck.  


“Kadan,” he whispered.  


“Kadan,” she replied, turning her head and catching his lips with hers.  


His throat was too thick with emotion to say anything more, so he contented himself with picking up a soft cloth and some soap and setting himself to getting her as clean as the limited space allowed. He waved off her attempts to return the favor, attending himself with the efficiency of a practiced soldier. Zuri was beginning to nod when there was a soft knock at the door.  


“Tiny?” Varric’s voice said. “Are you two awake? Me and the kid found you some food.”  


“And kittens,” Cole said, sounding pleased.  


Bull chuckled and rose slowly, wrapping himself in a towel before handing one to Zuri. “Give us a minute, Varric,” he called back. “We just finished getting cleaned up.”  


“Too much information, Tiny,” Varric said, sounding pained.  


“He means we don’t smell like wet dog anymore,” Zuri said, sounding amused. Bull threw on a clean pair of roomy trousers that Dorian had scared up somewhere and helped Zuri into a soft linen shirt and woolen leggings. He got her settled in front of the fire and called for Varric and Cole to enter, going to the bed to strip it. Varric entered with a steaming tray, followed by Cole, who led a quartet of kittens in who promptly lost interest in his shoelaces and instead began attacking the clean sheets Bull was trying to put on the bed. He had to chuckle at their antics as they bit the sheets with their needlelike teeth. It took him twice as long as necessary to get the bed ready, but it was worth it to hear Zuri laugh. When he was done he joined the three of them by the fire and they shared a simple, companionable meal of buttered rolls and scalding hot black tea while the kittens chased each other. The most gregarious of the kittens, the one with long gray fur that looked like the product of an adventurous barn cat that had fucked a lynx claimed Zuri’s lap and gnawed good-naturedly on her pinky as she finished her tea.  


Bull saw her suppress a yawn and saw from Varric’s expression that the dwarf had noticed too.  


“Come on, kid,” Varric said. “Let’s let these two get to bed.”  


“She wants to stay,” Cole said, looking down at the long-haired kitten. “She likes you.”  


Zuri smiled down at the kitten. “I like her too,” she said. “Thank you, Cole.”  


The young man nodded and let Bull walk him and Varric out. The dwarf looked like he wanted to say something, but oddly enough, Cole spoke first.  


“You’re angry,” Cole said quietly, once they were out of earshot of Zuri who was busy cooing to the bundle of fur in her lap. “It swirls around you, ebbing and flowing like the tide, but she didn’t mean to scare you. She’s scared too. Scared that you won’t forgive her bravery. But that’s who she is. Brave, and bold, and brash, and that’s why you-”  


“I get it, kid,” Bull promised, alarmed, as always, by Cole’s abilities. He knew that Cole was right, that the anger was surging inside him, warring with his relief. “I’ll take it easy, I promise.”  


Cole nodded. “The cats will tell me if you don’t,” he said and Bull stared at him, his stomach dropping. There was an awkward silence before Varric pinched the bridge of his nose.  


“Kid…”  


“Why can’t they tell when I’m joking?” Cole asked, his brows furrowing beneath his hat.  


Varric gave Bull an apologetic look and put an arm around Cole’s shoulder, leading him away. “It’s all in the delivery, kid,” he said. “I’ll explain downstairs.” The dwarf glanced back before they rounded the corner. “Go easy on her, Tiny,” he said in a low voice, and then the two rounded the corner, followed by three trotting kittens.  


Shaking his head, Bull entered the room and shut the door behind himself, locking it and then leaning against it, looking across at Zuri.  


She was sitting cross-legged on the bed, stroking the kitten and assiduously avoiding his eyes.  


“Kadan?” he said in a low voice that he hoped was soothing.  


“I know that you’re angry with me,” she said in a small little voice that broke his heart.  


With a sigh, Bull crossed to her and joined her on the bed, leaning back against the headboard and pulling her against his chest. She snuggled against him, dislodging the kitten as she wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned against him. “That isn’t it,” he said quietly. “Not exactly. You scared the shit out of me, Zuri. He shook his head. “All because I left you alone.”  


She pulled away a little and he saw the spark of heat in her eyes. “You followed orders,” she said. “An order I stand behind, I should add.”  


Bull felt his temper rising to meet hers as he looked down at her. “Zuri-”  


“Don’t ‘Zuri’ me,” she said. “If we’d left Cassandra, the things they would have done to her…” She clenched her eyes shut and Bull felt her shiver. He tightened his arms around her, drawing her back against his chest. “At least they would have kept me alive,” she said, her voice somewhat muffled against his skin.  


Bull gritted his teeth, hating that he knew without a doubt that she was right. Cassandra would have been brutally murdered after they had extracted every bit of information that they could from her. 

He knew that. And clearly, so did Zuri. He felt her shrug. “If nothing else, I would have had more time for you to rescue me than Cassandra would have,” she said. “I like to think I could have lasted...for awhile, at least.”  


“Don’t think about that,” Bull said, as much to himself as her. He didn’t want to contemplate what Zuri would have suffered if the Red Templars had succeeded in catching her. He heard her sniffle and tipped her chin up, wiping her tears away with his thumbs. He kissed her tenderly, and she kissed him back hard, her arms sliding up around his neck as she rose to her knees and pressed her body against him.  


“I knew that you would find me,” she said against his lips, leaning her forehead against his. “I knew that no matter what, you would find me.”  


“Always, Kadan,” Bull said, holding her to himself as tightly as he dared. He reached down into his pocket and pulled out her half of the Necklace of the Kadan. He had scrubbed the blood off of it and polished it so that the tooth shone in the dim firelight. “I am going to get you a new chain,” he said as she accepted it with a soft gasp. “But I wanted you to know that it wasn’t lost.”  


“Thank you,” she said, bringing the tooth to her lips and then wrapping her arms around him. “I was so sad to have lost it.”  


Bull decided not to tell her how the Red Templars had tried to use it to goad them into taking foolish action and instead pulled her in for a deep kiss, his hands spanning her back. She made a soft sound of need into the kiss, but Bull shook his head. As deeply as her desire impacted him, he couldn’t take her right then. He was too emotional, too frayed. There was too much of a chance of actually causing her harm. “When we get home,” he said gently, breaking the kiss to kiss her cheek. “I want you to rest. Recover.”  


Zuri grumbled, but snuggled against his chest without argument. She was asleep in moments and Bull pulled the coverlet up over her shoulder, leaning his head on top of hers. All that mattered was that she was safe.

####

Zuri signed the last form in front of her on her great desk in Skyhold and sat back with a wince. The kitten mimicked her stretch, yawning before it jumped off the desk and went in search of a meal. It had been a couple of weeks since her misadventure in the Emprise and she was finally feeling like herself again. She still had nightmares of cold and eyes that switched between red and green, and oddly, blue, but on the whole, she was fine.  


And yet, Bull hadn’t touched her.  


Certainly they kissed, and he slept in her bed more often than not, but they hadn’t been intimate since before she’d ordered him to get Cassandra to safety.  


She glanced out at the setting sun and rose, grimacing as her back popped in several places. She was hoping to remedy that tonight.  


She had spent the better part of the afternoon preparing for this evening. She’d bathed and dressed in the silken robe that Bull liked, with nothing beneath it. Once she put her papers away, her room was tidy, with plenty of surfaces for...whatever Bull wanted. The lockbox with the various things Bull liked to use to tie her up was on the nightstand. She had massage oils and even a little surprise for Bull.  


She just hoped he liked it.  


He’d told her time and again that he wasn’t angry with her. But something still wasn’t quite right between them. There was distance. And she hated it. She hadn’t realized how much she’d come to rely on their easy bond until it was gone.  


There was a knock on the door at the foot of the stairs. Four slow knocks, followed by four fast ones. It was Bull.  


“Come in,” Zuri said, hurrying to the center of her room and dropping to her knees with her hands flat on her thighs. She lowered her eyes as she heard Bull’s footsteps approaching. She knew immediately that his knee was troubling him. Well, hopefully that would change after tonight.  


“Zuri?” Bull said, and then she heard his soft intake of breath. “Kadan,” he said almost reverently.  


She didn’t answer, waiting for him to approach. He did slowly, and then she felt his calloused hand on her chin, tilting it up.  


“Kadan,” he repeated, and Zuri shivered at the intensity of the look he was giving her. “What’s all this, Little One?”  


Zuri felt her heart begin to race at the nickname. He only ever called her that when they were playing at this particular game. Hope bloomed in her chest.  


“I know that I frightened you,” she said, holding his gaze. “I wanted to make it up to you.” She smiled up at him. “And show you how much I appreciate how you cared for me.”  


He reached for her hands and Zuri let him raise her to her feet. His arms went around her, warm and unbelievably strong. “I will always care for you,” he said, and then his lips were on hers. The kiss began as a gentle one, but as his body pressed against hers, Zuri felt her need for Bull flare up white hot in her belly. She moaned into the kiss, parting her lips and eagerly accepting his tongue as he eased it between her lips to caress hers.  


He broke the kiss long before she would have, pulling back slightly. His pupil was huge as he looked down at her. “Are you sure about this?” he asked her, taking hold of her chin and gazing down at her.  


Zuri nodded. “I need you,” she said, giving him a tender kiss on the lips. “I’ve missed you, Bull. I need things to be all right between us.”  


“We’re good, Kadan,” Bull said, but Zuri shook her head.  


“We aren’t though,” she replied. “You haven’t done more than kiss me.” She glanced away, aware that her cheeks were warming under his scrutiny. “If you don’t want me...don’t want this anymore I-”  


Bull silenced her with a chuckle, but there was an edge to it that made the hair on the back of Zuri’s neck stand up. He took her hand and brought it to the bulge in his trousers. “Really?” he asked her in a low growl. “You’re smarter than that, Zuri.” He softened, bringing her hand up and kissing her palm. “Of course I want you,” he rumbled in the low voice that always made her knees weak. “I just don’t want to hurt you.”  


“You can hurt me a little,” Zuri said and was rewarded by a growl of need from her partner. “But first, there’s something I want to do.”  


Bull raised an eyebrow and Zuri took a deep breath before untying her robe and letting it drop. She was gratified by Bull’s sharp intake of breath and the way his eyes roamed her body. “Will you do something for me?” she asked.  


Bull grinned at her. “How could I say no?” he asked. He grew serious. “Anything, Kadan.”  


“Lie down on the bed,” Zuri said.  


“I like where this is going.”  


Zuri chuckled and swatted his arm. “Face down.”  


Bull grunted, but did as she asked, shucking his shawl and trousers. He leaned his knee brace against the nightstand and Zuri felt her eyes widen. His knee looked awful. It was swollen to twice the usual size and she felt a surge of guilt, knowing that carrying her through the snow had been at least partially responsible. She nodded to herself, more determined than ever in her course of action. When Bull was settled she went to him, picking up one of the containers on the nightstand. She straddled him, sitting on his ass and feeling it tense beneath her. He reached back with one hand and squeezed her thigh.  


“What’s the plan, Kadan?” he asked.  


Zuri opened the container and dribbled some of the oil on her palm. It smelled of spruce and immediately reacted with her skin, warming slightly. “Let me care for you,” she replied, then began to rub his back.  


Bull arched into her touch with a long groan as she worked the oil into the thick muscles of his neck and shoulders. She really dug in, using a significant portion of her strength to attack the knots that the huge warrior had. She was meticulous as a healer, beginning at the base of his skull and his neck, working her way slowly down to his shoulder blades, then further down still through his mid back and low back. Bull let out a soft chuckle as she massaged his ass, then the tops of his thighs, working her way down his legs to his feet. When she finally asked him to turn over the look on his face was blissful as he propped himself up against the headboard and stretched.  


“That was incredible, Kadan,” he said tenderly.  


“I’m not done,” Zuri said, pouring more oil in her palm. She began at his feet this time, working her way up his calves and thighs, watching his face for signs of pain. She left his bad knee for last, finally sitting cross-legged between his legs with her hands poised over it. “Is it all right if I use my magic?” she asked, looking over at him.  


He hesitated, then nodded, his eye heavily lidded. “I trust you,” he said softly.  


She smiled at him, then began to massage his knee. She called upon her fire magic to warm her hands, relaxing the muscles and tendons as she manipulated the swollen joint. As his body relaxed, she switched to the ice she commanded, tenderly using it to ease the inflammation until the joint was no longer so visibly swollen.  


“Zuri-” Bull’s voice was rough with emotion and when she looked over she saw an unfathomable look in his eye. “You didn’t have to-”  


“I wanted to,” she replied, releasing his knee and scooting up to kiss him.  


“Thank you,” he whispered against her lips.  


“Still not done,” she said, grinning into the kiss as she leaned across him and opened the drawer to the nightstand. From its depths she pulled a little clay pot and saw Bull’s eyes widen.  


“No fucking way,” he said, accepting it from her and lifting the lid. An earthy scent, the cross between damp clay and the smell of willow bark filled the air and she saw Bull swallow. “Where did you get horn balm?”  


“I know a guy,” she said, smiling.  


“I owe Varric a drink,” Bull said. He kissed her and then shook his massive head. “Zuri this is…”  


“May I?” she asked, reaching for the pot.  


Bull nodded and talked her through applying the ointment. At his instruction she started at the base of his horns, using a soft chamois to rub the thick, waxy ointment into the cool, smooth surface. 

Bull’s massive head dipped forward and he let out a quiet sigh, his hands resting lightly on her hips as she rubbed the ointment in until his horns shone dully in the firelight. She worked her way from the base of each to the pointed tips, loving the transformation as the ointment soaked in.  


“They’re so beautiful,” she said quietly as she put the lid back on the pot and set it on the table.  


“You’re so beautiful,” Bull said, one of his hands spanning the area between her shoulder blades as he pulled her in for a kiss so tender that she felt her eyes prickle.  


Zuri blushed. Bull told her that she was hot, that she was sexy, that she had great tits. But beautiful? That was a word that had implications. “I hope that feels a little better,” she said. “I remember you saying that they were getting itchy.”  


“They feel the best they have since I left Seheron,” Bull said in a quiet voice, sliding a finger under her chin and making her look at him. “I am a lucky man,” he said, his eye searching hers.  


“I’m just me,” Zuri said, blushing.  


He kissed her again and then pulled her into a hug. “That’s all I need, Kadan. Just you.”  


_I love you,_ Zuri thought, but the words stuck in her throat. She wasn’t sure what she was so scared of. Even if she couldn’t speak the words, she could at least keep trying to show him. 

Zuri kissed his cheek and down to his jaw, working her way slowly out to his ear. She caught his earlobe between her teeth and gave a gentle nip, feeling her body flush with need as he grunted. She continued kissing down his body, running her tongue down over his collarbone. He hissed her name and when she looked up he was watching her intently. She held his eye as she kissed down his chest and belly, feeling his cock harden against her body as she worked her way down. By the time she knelt between his legs, it was stiff and already beginning to drip. She leaned in and kissed the tip, letting the wetness coat her lips as she looked up at him. “I’m yours,” she said quietly.  


He nodded, cupping the back of her head with one enormous hand. “Yes,” he said, and she shivered at the possessive edge to his tone.  


She let him guide her to his cock, dragging her tongue from the base up to the tip and swirling around, licking away the wetness and smiling as he let out a long groan. She worked slowly, licking from base to tip over and over as his gentle fingers stroked along her scalp. She was teasing him and they both knew it.  


“Bull?”  


“Mmm?” he rumbled, his nails stroking along her scalp as she ran the tip of her tongue around the head of his cock.  


She looked up at him, butterflies in her stomach. “I want…” she swallowed. “I want to be your Little One tonight,” she said. The tops of her cheeks colored. “I need to be. To give that to you. To...to have that.” She glanced away, a little unnerved by the inscrutable look on his face. “Only if you still want me that way,” she finished lamely.  


He was quiet for a moment, then his body slowly uncoiled as he shifted to kneel in front of her, pulling her up to her knees with him. He drew her against his body and kissed her long and slow, his tongue easing her lips open as the heat built between them. They were both breathing hard when he pulled back and looked down at her. “Are you sure that you’re ready, Zuri?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. “I promise, you’re worth waiting for to me if you’re not. As long as you need.”  


“I’m ready,” she said and she heard how eager she sounded. She knew from the way the corner of his lips curled that he heard it to. He brushed his thumb over her lips, his eye searching hers. He gave an almost imperceptible nod. “There’s something I have to do first,” he said firmly. “Go over by the fire, Kadan. And wait just like you were when I came in, but with your eyes closed.”  


Zuri blinked, a little nonplussed, but hurried to do as he ordered. She knelt in front of the flames, her hands resting on her thighs, her eyes closed. She heard Bull slide off the bed and rummage around in the box on the nightstand before his steps approached her. She was gratified to hear that they sounded much more even.  


“Keep your eyes closed,” he said, coming to stand behind her.  


She did as he bade and let out a quiet gasp when she felt something heavy and cool slide between her breasts. Bull’s fingertips were feather-light on her neck and then he moved around in front of her again. She heard him take a deep breath.  


“Ok, Kadan,” he said. “Open your eyes and look down.”  


Zuri opened her eyes and glanced down and heard herself let out a little gasp of pleasure. The Necklace of the Kadan was back in its rightful place around her neck, but the braided leather thong that she’d originally used had been replaced by a silver chain. The chain looked like many silver cables had been braided together and when she ran it between her fingers, it felt strong. Bull reached down and gave it a tug, the tender smile on his face maching her breath catch.  


“Dorian said it’s something called a ‘wheat chain’,” he said, sounding a little self-conscious. “It’s supposed to be really strong.” He gave her a lopsided smile and caressed her cheek.  


“It’s beautiful, Bull,” Zuri breathed. “I love it. Thank you.”  


“Beautiful and strong,” Bull said, holding her eyes. “Just like you.”  


Zuri blushed and looked down, but Bull caught her chin, shaking his head.  


“Don’t look away,” he said firmly. “You are beautiful, Zuri. And strong.” He grinned down at her. “And hot as hell wearing only a dragon tooth around your neck.”  


Her cheeks still aflame, Zuri couldn’t help but smile back up at him.  


“My heart,” Bull said, growing suddenly serious. “My Zuri.” He took a deep breath and Zuri saw his shoulders straighten infinitesimally as he lifted his chin. “My Little One.”  


The words stole the breath from her for a moment and with anyone else she would have felt self-conscious at the little gasp that escaped her lips.  


His lips curled as he gave a little nod. “Do you want to start now?” he asked. “Or did you want to start slower?”  


She looked up at him, and she thought that everything she felt for him was probably scrawled across her face. “I’m yours,” she whispered. “I want you to have me now.”  


He crouched with a grunt in front of her and cupped her face in his massive hands. He kissed her tenderly and then leaned his forehead against hers. “What’s your watchword?” he asked, his breath mingling with hers and smelling faintly of mint.  


“Katoh,” she said.  


He nodded and kissed her again, then brought the Necklace of the Kadan to his lips and gave it a kiss while holding her eyes. That was the signal that Bull was stepping back so that Ser could take over.  


“Give me your wrists,” He ordered and she held them up before her. He picked up a length of red rope from the little table by the fire, showing it to her with an eyebrow raised. “I can go thicker if you’d rather,” he said in the quiet voice that made everything feel all the more intimate. “You just look so sexy in red.”  


“I like that one,” Zuri said. “It’s softer than the other ones.” It made sense that it was, the rope had been a part of the ataam-saar at one point, until she’d found a better way to make the armor and this rope had joined the little box of toys.  


“Behind you ok?”  


Zuri shivered, but nodded. Things always felt a little more intense when she was bound with her arms behind her.  


“Is behind you ok, Little One?” Bull repeated.  


“Yes,” Zuri said.  


“Yes....?”  


They were well and truly into it now. “Yes, Ser,” she said, dropping her eyes demurely.  


Bull walked around behind her and she heard the low rumble of his laugh. “Now that’s not like you,” he said as he began to create the intricate knots around her wrists and forearms. “Captulating so quickly.”  


She glanced over her shoulder, narrowing her eyes, and saw the answering spark of amusement in his expression. “Something to say, LIttle One?” he asked mildly.  


“No,” she replied.  


Bull gave her a moment to correct herself, and when she didn’t his smile widened. He didn’t respond further right away, instead tugging the rope and raising an eyebrow. “How does that feel, Little One?”  


“Tight, but not too tight,” she said, flexing her arms and rolling her shoulders. “It’s good.”  


“Good,” he replied. He moved around in front of her and Zuri heard herself whimper at how hard his cock was. A bead of wetness caught the firelight and glistened, and Zuri bit her lip, looking up at Bull as he wrapped his hand around his cock and eased his foreskin back, exposing the slick, dark head of his cock. “Open your mouth,” he said. “Tongue out.”  


She complied and warmed all over at his appreciative sound as he looked down at her. “Fuck you look so good like that. So fucking hot kneeling there waiting to take my cock.” He began to stroke himself slowly, his eye never leaving hers as he caressed her cheek with his other hand.  


She watched, feeling herself growing wetter and more swollen with every stroke of his hand as the wetness beaded on the head of his cock.  


“Should I cum on your face, Little One?” he asked, his voice rough. “Or on those fucking perfect tits?” His hand caught her chin, squeezing hard enough to be almost painful. “Or do you think you can take it down your throat?”  


She narrowed her eyes and lifted her chin, silently challenging him.  


He let out a rough little laugh, his eyebrow rising. “There she is,” he said softly. “All right, Little One, show me what you’ve got.”  


She rose up on her knees and flicked her tongue out against the head, licking away the bead of wetness as she held his eyes. Then, before she could second-guess herself, she rocked forward, slamming her mouth down as far as she could. She took him until he hit her throat and she felt her body convulse as she gagged, but she forced herself to breathe through her nose. Her eyes watered and she pulled back a little with the most obscene sound as she slurped around the head of his cock. Bull was moaning above her, one his hands on her head, the other wrapped around the base of his cock and easing it into her mouth. She leaned forward and took him deeply again, whimpering as the saliva escaped her mouth and dribbled down her neck. With anyone else she would have been self-conscious, but the sounds of Bull’s moans egged her on.  


“FUCK-” he growled, his hips beginning to match her rhythm as his hand slid to the back of her head. “Fuck you’re such a good girl, Little One! That sweet little mouth feels so fucking good.” 

Determined to match him, Zuri pushed herself to take more of him and found herself gagging hard, her eyes watering. Instantly Bull pulled back out of her mouth, cupping her cheek. “Hey,” he said gently. “Easy, Kadan.” He smiled down at her, his thumb stroking back and forth over her cheekbone. “You don’t have anything to prove,” he said softly. “All right?”  


Zuri nodded and then leaned forward, opening her mouth and sticking out her tongue with a smile.  


Bull chuckled and eased into her mouth again, though she felt his hand tighten on the back of her head and knew that he was taking care to control her pace. She closed her eyes, losing herself in the scent of his body, in the feeling of his thick cock filling her mouth, and above her she heard him softly encouraging her.  


“You feel so good, Little One. You look so fucking delicious on your knees in front of me. I can’t wait to fill you up with my cum, to see you drip and know that your sweet little body is all mine.”  


Zuri moaned around him, tasting the precum leaking from his cock as he took her mouth. She loved how his breathing grew ragged, how the little tremors went through his body telling her that he was close to finishing. But it appeared that Bull had other plans, because he withdrew from between her lips with a low growl and stood above her. His eye shut as he breathed hard, his hand resting on top of her head. She saw him swallow and his eye snapped open and met hers.  


“Good girl,” he said and Zuri felt her cheeks flush.  


“You don’t have to stop,” she said. “I can take it, I promise.”  


“You will,” he said. “When I’m ready for you to.” He raised his eyebrow. “Is that clear, Little One?”  


She nodded and let out a little whimper when he reached down and put his hand at her throat. He only needed one hand to go completely around and he gave a gentle, firm squeeze. “I said, ‘is that clear’?”  


“Yes, Ser,” she said. “I just want to make you feel good, that’s all.”  


His expression softened as he brushed his thumb over where her pulse was beating faster. “You do just by being here with me like this,” he said. “Relax, Little One. Let me lead.”  


She nodded, moaning when he leaned down and kissed her roughly, his hand not leaving her throat as the other slid between her legs.  


He let out a low groan. “FUCK, you’re so fucking wet.”  


She whimpered, rocking her hips into his touch. “It-It’s all for you,” she breathed.  


His middle finger teased her clit, making her moan wantonly. “Say it again,” he rumbled.  


“It’s all for you!” Zuri gasped. “I’m so wet for you, Bull! So wet from sucking your cock like-”  


His fingers left her as his cock filled her mouth again, sliding in until she made a soft noise of effort. He held his cock there, his hands on the back of her head as he began to thrust slowly in and out of her mouth. He pulled back abruptly, the head of his cock against her lips as he stood over her breathing hard. “Look at me,” he panted. “Look at me while you suck me like such a fucking good girl.”  


Zuri looked up at him, eyes wide, and he growled with need as he slowly eased his cock into her mouth. He pushed her further this time, his hand on the back of her head. “That’s it, Little One,” he said. “Just like that. You’re such a good girl, your throat feels so fucking good.”  


Zuri moaned around him, rubbing her tongue against his shaft and warming at his soft hiss of need.  


“Do you trust me?” he asked, pulling back so that he slipped from her lips.  


“Yes,” Zuri said immediately. “With my life.”  


The way he smiled at her brought the words to the forefront of her mind again. “Open, Little One,” he ordered.  


She did and his cock entered her mouth slowly, sliding along her tongue until it reached the back of her throat. He held it there and then reached down, pinching her nose shut between his thumb and forefinger. She pushed down the instinctual rush of panic and tried to relax, loving the way Bull said her name quietly. His hips began to move faster and he gave her a moment to breathe before pinching her nose shut again. He kept pushing her, gagging her on his cock and then taking away her breath until saliva dripped down her neck and onto her breasts and her lips were swollen. Abruptly he pulled back with a long groan and stood over her, breathing hard.  


“Fuck,” he rumbled. “Fuck you are so good to me, Kadan.”  


Zuri was breathing hard as well, but she smiled up at him. She went to wipe her mouth, but Bull stopped her.  


“No,” he said. “I like you sloppy.” His eyes travelled her body. “Everywhere.”  


“I am,” she said immediately.  


“I’m going to taste,” he said. He knelt in front of her, kissing her tenderly. She lost herself in the feeling of his arms around her, the firmness of his lips against hers, the skilled way his tongue caressed hers. He broke the kiss and began to kiss down her body, licking and sucking at her neck as his huge hands massaged and caressed her breasts. He pulled back after sucking so hard at her collarbone that it left a purplish mark. He rose and kissed her cheek. “Stay there,” he ordered before crossing to the couch and picking up a couple of cushions, tossing them on the floor in front of the fire. He lay down, shifting until he appeared to be comfortable. Then he smiled at her. “Come here, Kadan,” he said.  


Zuri moved to climb on top of his body, but he caught her before she could straddle his cock. His powerful hands wrapped around her hips. “No,” he said, smiling wickedly. “I told you I was going to taste, Little One.”  


Zuri heard herself gasp. “Bull-”  


“Little One.”  


She shivered and went silent and saw him nod. “I want you on my face, Little One,” he rumbled. “So that I can eat your sweet little cunt and taste how fucking wet you are just for me.” His eye narrowed. “So I can look up and see you, all of you.”  


She blushed, glancing away. They had tried to do this once before and she’d gotten anxious. She’d heard voices from her past in her head. Voices mocking her for her thicker thighs and the curve of her belly. Mocking the size of her breasts and calling her a common cow.  


“Yeah,” Bull said softly. “ _That’s_ why. That face you’re making right now. That fear that you could ever be anything other than exactly what I need and want.” His hands tightened on her. “You’re mine, Kadan. Now come here.”  


Zuri let him pull her towards him, sinking down with her knees on either side of his face. She went to try to put her hands over her belly, but the bindings stopped her. Bull was watching, as always. 

“You good?” he asked quietly.  


She bit her lip, wanting more than anything to tell him “yes”. Instead, to her horror, she felt her eyes water. Instantly Bull pushed up and took her into his arms.  


“Zuri,” he breathed, his hands smoothing up and down her back. “I’ve got you.”  


“I just...I don’t want you to-to... _stop wanting me_ ,” Zuri thought. “I-I’m not as...I’m not-”  


“You’re not what, Kadan?” Bull asked.  


“I...I’m not as beautiful as some of the other women you’ve bedded,” she said in a rush. “I-I’m not-I…” she took a deep breath. “The only thing special about me is that I’m the Inquisitor,” she finished quietly. “Maybe if I looked like that redheaded barmaid or I-”  


“Enough,” Bull said, his tone firm. “Zuri, look at me.”  


She did and heard herself gasp at the look in his eye. There was intensity there as he cupped her cheeks.  


“My heart,” he said. “Zuri...there is no one sexier to me than you. No one more beautiful. No one I fucking want more.” He growled and leaned in, nipping her collarbone. “‘Only thing special’ my pillowy man bosoms.”  


She giggled in spite of herself and he grinned.  


“I know you don’t see it, Kadan,” he said quietly. “Which I don’t get, but I’m happy to find new and creative ways to prove to you how much you’re wanted, needed, and…” she saw his adam’s apple bob as he took hold of the Necklace of the Kadan. “When I call you ‘my heart’, it is not a figure of speech,” he finished, his voice rough. “Do you understand?”  


Zuri nodded, but Bull shook his head.  


“I mean it,” he said. “Do you understand?”  


“I...think so,” she said honestly. “Or at least...I believe you. I just...I don’t see it.”  


“Mmmm, well you can’t see yourself from my...perspective,” Bull said, lying back down and drawing her in for a kiss. “Speaking of which…” the gentle kiss he gave her made her heart flutter. “I want you, Zuri,” he said softly. “I want to devour you in a way that burns away any doubts that you are exactly what I need...and what I want.” He licked her neck and kissed up to her lips, his enormous hands massaging her arms. “Are your arms ok, Kadan? You’ve been tied up for a long time.”  


“I’m ok,” she said, rolling her shoulders. “I think I’ve got another couple of candlemarks in me.”  


“Mmmmm, that’s not all that’s going to be in you,” Bull said, predictably, and she laughed. “Are we ok, Kadan?”  


“We are,” she said. “I am.” She blushed. “It might take me a moment to...to be comfortable, but I trust you, Bull. I want to be this...vulnerable with you.” She kissed his cheek. “I’m yours, Iron Bull. now and forever.”  


“Mmmmmm,” he rumbled into her neck. “I like the sound of that.”  


Zuri took a deep breath. “Lie down,” she said softly.  


Bull raised his eyebrow. “Giving orders now, Little One?”  


She dropped her eyes. “Please, Ser,” she murmured. “Lie down. There is something I wish to give you.”  


Bull lay back without comment, his hands stroking up and down her sides as he got settled. When he was, Zuri slid up his body, shivering as his hands tightened on her hips. His thumbs dug into her hip bones as he lowered her down onto his mouth and she cried out as his clever tongue found her clit. He slurped her into his mouth with the most obscene noise and Zuri moaned his name as one of his hands slid up her body to caress her breasts. His mouth was harsh and insistent on her cunt as he sucked and licked her, and she heard herself gasping and begging him for more as he dipped his tongue into her. She pushed up on her knees with a groan.  


“Are you-are you ok?” she panted. “I’m not squishing you am I-”  


Bull snarled and yanked her body back down, his powerful hands on her thighs pinning her against his face as he redoubled his efforts. His tongue probed into her before he sucked her clit into his mouth hard and fast, pushing her towards her pleasure.  


He shoved her back just slightly, his eye finding hers. “You’re perfect,” he growled. “And you taste so fucking good. Your body looks so fucking hot from here. I can’t wait to see you fucking cum on my face.”  


Zuri moaned, throwing her head back as Bull yanked her back down on him, his fingers tweaking her nipples before his hands encircled her hips. He licked her with purpose and Zuri felt her body growing taut with need as she grew close.  


“Oh fuck-” Zuri whimpered. “Oh Bull, please, please I’m so fucking close please make me cum please please-”  


“Beg,” he snarled against her folds and Zuri was too far gone to argue.  


“Please!” she begged him, her back arched almost painfully as she rocked her hips against him as fast as he would let her. “Please, Ser! Please make me cum please let me cum please-”  


Bull growled against her and wrapped his lips around her clit and then Zuri felt her body spasming and found herself screaming as he drove her over the edge. One of his hands was on her hips, the other grasped her bound wrists and pulled her back into a deeper arch until the last of the aftershocks hit her.  


But Bull still didn’t stop.  


She tried to pull away, but he clutched her to himself growling as his tongue moved in slow circles around her clit.  


“I can’t, I can’t, I can’t-” she panted. “Bull, I can’t!”  


“You will,” he growled against her swollen folds. He gave them a tender kiss, then buried his face in them again, and Zuri gave herself over to him utterly. His hands roamed her body seemingly at random, but each caress, each gentle pinch or firm grab only served to heighten her need as he drove her relentlessly towards another orgasm. When she came this time there were tears streaking down her cheeks and Bull’s hands were tender as he eased her backwards on his body and took her into his arms.  


“You are so fucking hot,” Bull growled, kissing her and filling her senses with the scent of her own need. “You looked so fucking good cumming on my face like that, Kadan.”  


Zuri blushed and shivered when Bull growled and nipped her neck.  


“I’m not done, Kadan,” he said and she realized his clever fingers had untied the bindings on her arms. He massaged them tenderly, checking to make sure that they weren’t numb and kissing her fingers when he was sure she was all right.  


He pulled back a little. “I want you on all fours,” he said. “Get that sweet little ass up for me.”  


Zuri did as he bade, glancing back over her shoulder at him.  


“Fuck that is a pretty picture, Little One,” he said, rising to his knees. “That wet little cunt, that perfect little ass….fuck, the things I want to do to you.”  


“So why don’t you?” Zuri asked pertly, even though there were butterflies in her stomach. Bull had never done much beyond gently touch her ass, but tonight...tonight she wanted him to have all of her.  


Bull went still, his hand idly stroking his cock as he looked at her. “Little One? Are you sure. This is a big step.”  


“Just go slow,” she said. “Please. I’m...I’m nervous, but I want this.” She blushed. “I want you to have every bit of me that you want.”  


“There’s no part of you that I don’t want,” Bull said in a low voice that went straight to her heart, then lower.  


His hands slid up her thighs to her lower back, massaging tenderly as he rose to his knees behind her. He leaned down and nipped her ass first on the right, then on the left, before his powerful hands took hold of her cheeks and tenderly spread her. She heard his long, shuddering exhalation. “Fuck, Little One, you look so fucking delicious.”  


Zuri couldn’t help it, she whimpered and heard him let out a low rumble of laughter. She cried out as she felt his breath against her, and the cry turned to a low moan as he flicked his tongue against her hole. He held her spread for him, not giving her a chance to doubt or question as he began to lick her furiously. One of his fingers eased into her cunt while his thumb worked her clit and his tongue flickered against her asshole. The sensations were overwhelming and Zuri bucked back against him, moaning wantonly.  


“That’s my girl,” Bull said, his breath hot against her. “That’s my fucking girl. You want it so fucking bad. You look so good so needy for me.”  


“Bull please-” Zuri moaned, arching her back as his tongue probed her hole.  


“Please what, Little One?” he growled, biting her right ass cheek hard enough that she yelped.  


She shivered. “I don’t know,” she said. “I just...I want you to have me. All of me.”  


She heard his shuddering intake of breath. “I don’t want to hurt you, Kadan,” he said, kissing tenderly along her ass and down to where her swollen folds dripped. He slurped along the seam between them, flicking his tongue against her clit.  


“I trust you,” she said, her heart beating faster. “I don’t mind you hurting me a little bit.”  


Bull growled, sliding another finger inside her and making her whimper with need. “Careful talking like that, Little One. You make me want to do very bad things to you.”  


She glanced back at him and smiled. “Tease.”  


Bull rose slowly, his hands on her ass, massaging. “Another night, Kadan. I need to make some preparations before I claim this perfect little asshole.” He kissed each cheek, then surprised her by slapping the right one hard. She cried out, her hips rocking of their own accord and he smiled at her, slapping the other cheek even harder.  


“Count them, Little One,” Bull said.  


“Two!” Zuri panted.  


They got up to twenty before Bull called halt, his lips ghosting over the reddened skin. “I have to stop, Little One,” he said, pulling her into his lap. “As scared as I was in Emprise...I don’t think it’s safe for me to be that way with you tonight.” He kissed her hungrily, then pulled back, his eye searching hers. “I don’t trust myself not to lose control.”  


“I trust you,” Zuri said and the smile Bull gave her was unbelievably sweet.  


“And that’s a precious gift that I’ll treat that way,” Bull said, unusually serious. His hands traced ineffable patterns on her back as her knees settled on either side of his thighs. His thick cock rubbed against her sensitive folds and he hissed her name.  


“Please,” Zuri whispered, trailing her fingers over his cheeks, ears, and horns. “I need it tonight, Kadan. I need to be yours. For you to...to,” she blushed. “I need you to claim me,” she said in a rush. Completely. Even if it isn’t everywhere tonight. I just...I need things to be right between us.”  


“You don’t have to give me that for us to be ok, Kadan,” Bull said softly.  


“I know,” Zuri said, and she did. “But I want to.” She gazed down at him. “Please, Ser,” she breathed, dropping her eyes innocently. “Won’t you take what’s yours?”  


“Fuck, Zuri,” Bull growled, one of his hands cupped her ass as the other spanned her lower back. He kissed her lips, then down along her jaw, taking her earlobe between his teeth and giving it a little tug. “You’re fucking delicious, do you know that?”  


“All I know is that I’m yours,” Zuri said, blushing.  


“Forever,” Bull agreed. “All right, Little One, but I need you to stop me if it is too much. Do you promise?”  


Zuri nodded, but Bull shook his head and caught her chin between his thumb and forefinger. “Before you’d need the watchword, Kadan. Do you promise?” He shook his head, his horns casting shadows on the wall.  


“I promise, my love,” Zuri said seriously, and saw Bull’s eye widen as they both realized what she had said. He kissed her deeply and she could feel him smiling into the kiss. She smiled back, parting her lips for him to deepen the kiss. He responded eagerly, his tongue brushing over her lower lip before he caught it with his teeth.  


“Mine,” Bull replied, holding her tightly and easing her down onto the wide head of his cock. “Zuri, oh my Zuri-FUCK!”  


She whimpered as he slid into her, filling her more completely than she ever could have imagined before him. “Bull! Fuck you feel so fucking good.”  


His eye fluttered open and he grinned at her. “I love to hear you talk that way,” he growled at her. “Tell me how I feel, Little One.”  


“So big,” Zuri breathed, rocking her hips hard and gasping as he slid a little deeper. “So thick. It feels so good to have you buried inside me.”  


“You’re so fucking tight,” he growled into her ear.  


“I was made for you,” Zuri said, the words coming easily now as Bull eased her up and down on him. The fire warmed her sides, but she felt the warmth inside as well as she draped her arms over his shoulders and leaned back. His mouth found her nipples, sucking first one then the other into his mouth as he thrust up into her. “My body was made for your hands, for your mouth, for your thick cock.”  


He let out a low groan and jerked her down on him hard enough that she screamed his name and clenched around him. “Fuck yes you were,” he growled, breathing hard as the motion of his hips stilled. “Are you ok?” he asked.  


“No,” Zuri said in a growl that rivaled his. “Because you stopped fucking me.”  


“My heart,” Bull said, kissing her deeply and falling backwards slowly so that she straddled him. Instinctually her hand went to cover her belly, but Bull caught it and held it, his eyes fixed on her. “Perfect for me,” he said. His lips curled in a dangerous smile. “Now show me what you’ve got.”  


She needed no further encouragement, feeling her confidence growing as he touched and praised her, his eye fixed on her as she bounced on his cock. Her legs began to tremble with exertion as she pushed herself to go harder and faster, but the burn felt almost as good as the burn of him stretching her.“I want you to fill me up, Bull,” she said, bringing his hands to her breasts and squeezing. “Claim me, please claim me as yours.”  


Bull groaned and she felt the shudder go through his body. “Are you sure, Little One?” he asked. “Are you sure, my Zuri?  


“Yes,” she panted, leaning down and resting her forehead against his. She pulled back just a little. “Yes, Ser,” she said, tilting her head and baring her neck.  


Bull rolled her suddenly, his powerful arms absorbing the impact as he rolled her underneath him. He took her thigh and draped it over his elbow as he thrust into her, leaning down and biting her neck. “My gorgeous girl,” he grunted, snapping his hips hard enough to make her whimper.  


She reached for his hand, bringing it to her throat. “I’m yours...Ser,” she said softly.  


His hand shook a little as he tightened it, the motion of his body slowly to a gentle, steady rhythm as he looked down at her. “Yes,” he said. He leaned in and kissed her lips, then down her chest to where her heart beat. “My heart beats here too,” he said in a voice so low she almost missed it. “Remember that the next time you decide to do something brave.”  


She smiled tenderly up at him, throwing her head back as his hand tightened around her throat.  


“You’re all mine,” he said, beginning to thrust harder again. One of his hands dug into her hip, while the other held her throat. “Fuck-Zuri...I don’t want to hurt you.”  


“I can take it,” Zuri said, putting her hand over the one at his throat. “I want to take it. Please, Ser...please give me everything that you have.”  


Bull let out a groan that made the hairs on her arms stand up and then he was pounding into her with abandon. His hand left her hip to wrap underneath her as he slowly began to tighten his hand around her throat. “Watchword if you can’t breath,” he rumbled. “That’s a fucking order, Little One. Watchword because you feel so good getting so tight. I love how you look with my hand at your throat.” He leaned in and nipped her lower lip hard. “Maybe one day it’ll be a collar.”  


She whimpered and his answering smile was a feral one. “Do you like that, Little One? Would you like me to collar you?”  


“I-” Zuri keened as he thrust deep and held his place. His hand tightened enough that she saw spots for a moment before he released the pressure. Zuri brought her hand up to the Necklace of the Kadan. “I was under the impression that that is what this was,” she said softly. “Does it not bind me to you? Does it not put my life in your hands?” She gave him a sassy smile. “More than it was already when I hired the Bull’s Chargers I mean.”  


“It binds me to you just as much,” Bull said, caressing her cheek before kissing her tenderly. He began to thrust again, his hand returning to her throat. “I’m yours, Kadan,” he growled. “As much as you’re mine.”  


Zuri moaned his name, wrapping her hand around his wrist as he tightened his grip, his other hand pulling her leg up to let him enter her more deeply.  


“So good,” he growled. “So fucking perfect for me.”  


She whimpered, nodding her head.  


“Stroke your clit, Little One,” Bull said, beginning to thrust a little more shallowly. “Make yourself cum on my cock.” He smiled rakishly, his hand tight at her throat. “You have until you run out of air.”  


She gasped, but found herself smiling up at him as she slid her hand down her body. She’d been self-conscious about touching herself in front of him at the beginning of their relationship. It had reminded her too much of things she’d rather forget. But it felt safe with Bull, and the appreciative sounds he made as he watched her always warmed her all the way through.  
Her clit was swollen and sensitive when she touched herself, and she whimpered as she felt his hand tighten.  


“Little One,” he groaned, looking down and watching her as he thrust in and out slowly. “Faster,” he ordered, his hand closing on her throat further. “Faster, Little One, show me what you’ve got. Show me how fucking good I make you feel.”  


She cried out his name, her back arching off the bed as she stroked herself furiously. Her throat burned, she could feel the pressure building behind her eyes, but she pushed herself to continue. The pleasure built quickly and she knew that Bull was aware of it as he whispered endearments to her.  


“Just like that,” Bull moaned, his hips beginning to move again. “Just like that, Little One, fuck-oh FUCK you’re so tight.”  


She whimpered, she didn’t have the air to make another sound. Her hand was beginning to cramp, as was the leg wrapped around Bull’s waist, but it didn’t matter because she could feel the pleasure reaching a crescendo inside her and then she was thrashing and twisting in Bull’s hands as she came. His hand left her throat abruptly, letting her breathe, before returning. His eye was intense as it focused on her. “Don’t you fucking stop,” he snarled. “Not yet, Little One. Not yet. Keep touching yourself until I fucking fill your perfect little hole with my cum! Don’t stop until I claim you. Don’t...don’t fucking stop!”  


Zuri all but sobbed before his hand tightened again and she touched herself, her body tensing as she pushed herself past the intense sensitivity.  


“Zuri-” Bull panted. “Little One-cum right now. Cum. CUM!” He bit down on her shoulder, his hand at her throat tightening so hard that the world at the edges of her vision went dark. “Cum!” Bull chanted, his teeth worrying her skin and her body obeyed him more than it ever had her and she was crashing over the edge and the sweet air was rushing into her lungs.  


“BULL!” she managed to scream hoarsely and at the sound of it she felt Bull’s body tense.  


“Little One!” Bull’s lips were desperate on hers. “Zuri, I’m going to-”  


“Finish in me, Bull!” Zuri moaned against his lips. “Please, I need it please, I’m begging you to claim me like that!”  


“Are you sure?” he asked and she could feel him shuddering with the effort of not taking his own pleasure yet. “Are you sure, Little One? I can pull out like usual, I don’t-”  


She took his cheeks in her hands and made him look at her. “Claim me,” she said firmly. “I’m yours.”  


His arms went around her, clutching her tightly to him as he began to pound into her with a frenzy that she’d never seen in him before. He scarcely lasted more than a handful of strokes before a great shudder went through his body. “Zuri-” he gasped, and then trailed off in a long bellow of pleasure. She felt his cock jerking inside her, filling her with his seed as the motion of his hips stuttered. When he finally collapsed on top of her, his body was shaking and they were both covered in a sheen of sweat. He pulled out after a few moments, and Zuri caught the fierce look on his face as his cum began to drip from her swollen folds.  


“Yours,” she said softly.  


He leaned down and kissed her. “Mine,” he agreed. Then he rolled with a groan, pulling Zuri so that she lay draped on him. His hands were gentle as they stroked up and down her back.  


“Fuck, Zuri,” he said once they were both done panting.  


“I need a minute,” she said and heard the rumble of his laughter.  


They lay together in front of the fire for awhile, before Bull kissed her cheek. “Come on, Little One,” he said. “Let’s get you cleaned up.” Before she could respond he rose, lifting her like she weighed nothing. He kissed her as he walked to the bed, and when he lay her down it was as gently as though she was made of the finest crystal. He leaned over her and kissed the necklace, relinquishing his role as “Ser” before crossing to the ewer and getting a couple of cloths wet. He cleaned her slowly and tenderly, starting at her face and the bite marks on her neck, moving down over her breasts and belly, and finally between her legs. She hissed at the touch, and his heavy brow furrowed.  


“Are you all right, Kadan?” he asked, pausing his ministrations.  


She smiled. “A little sore,” she said. She stretched. “But in a good way.”  


He was watching her. “A little elfroot salve,” he said, leaning over and getting the ointment out of the drawer. As she watched him it was amazing to her, as always, how gentle those powerful hands could be. He was thorough as he applied it, getting every scratch, bite, and bruise.  


Zuri nestled down beneath the covers, suddenly sleepy.  


“Can I get you something to eat, Kadan,” Bull asked. “Or drink?”  


“Later,” Zuri murmured, reaching for him. “I just want you to hold me.”  


“I can do that,” Bull said, sliding into bed next to her and pulling her into his arms. Zuri snuggled against his side, breathing in the scent of him as she felt his lips brush the top of her head. _I love you,_ she thought, tightening her arm around his waist. The thought had scared her before, but it just felt good now. “Kadan,” she murmured.

####

“Kadan,” Iron Bull said, looking down at the woman in his arms and kissing her tenderly, overwhelmed by the depth of what he was feeling. It had long ago passed affection, turning instead into something all-consuming and warm. But it wasn’t just the heat of passion, though that could hardly be denied. It was the warmth of a hearth burning, of clean, dry sheets while it stormed outside. It was domestic and comforting and the word flitted around the edge of his mind, but stuck in his throat when he tried to say it.  


“You good, Kadan?” he said instead, stroking her back.  


“Mmmmm,” she replied. She smiled up at him, but he saw uncertainty in her eyes. “Was that...ok?”  


He raised his eyebrow. “You can’t be seriously asking,” he teased gently. He reached up and cupped her cheek. “It was incredible, Kadan. All of it. It was a beautiful gift that you gave me tonight.” He cocked his head. “Can I ask where it came from?”  


She shrugged a shoulder and Bull forced himself not to be distracted by the tempting way it made her breasts move.  


“When you care about someone, you give them what they need,” she said softly, looking up at him with such a nakedly loving expression that he felt his heart clench.  


He stared down at her, realizing that she had read him exactly right. After all of the fear and uncertainty of their time in Emprise, he needed to be grounded again. To know exactly where they stood with each other. To feel the depth and intensity of their bond and know that she was there, she was safe, and they were bound together. The woman could have been a damn Tamassran in another life.  


“My heart,” he murmured before kissing her deeply. He tightened his arms around her, rubbing the knots from her back as he felt her slip into sleep. As her soft snores filled the air around them, Bull knew that try as he might to avoid thinking the word, it was there just the same.  


He pressed his lips to the top of her head and closed his eyes. The thought would have terrified him at one point, but now, it sent him to sleep with a smile on his face.  


_I love you, Zuri._

**Author's Note:**

> This was super fun to write and a nice break from some of the more dark and serious stuff that I have been writing. I hope that you enjoyed it. Thank you for reading!


End file.
